Christmas Market river cruises Have you seen advertisements for Christmas Market river cruises in Europe? And have you thought "I wonder if I would enjoy one of those"? And, if so, what excuse could I come up with to justify it? Or have you thought, "who wants to go on a cruise about Christmas"? It's hard enough to ignore Christmas at home. But if you did want to go, how … [Read more...]
Design in Dusseldorf
Beautifully designed 5 star luxury in Dusseldorf We arrived in Dusseldorf in a driving rain that was disheartening until we ducked into the splendor of our home for the next 4 days; the Breidenbacher Hof. The staff at the hotel knew who we were when our taxi pulled up out front (might have been the police notices all over town) and they were so welcoming and gracious that … [Read more...]
Saving Nuremberg artwork in the Second World War
The most precious and famous Nuremberg artwork, as well as other important treasures, was saved in the Second World War although the city was 90% destroyed by bombs. This impressive feat was accomplished using a labyrinth of beer cellars, built in medieval times, deep into the grounds under the Imperial Castle. Not surprisingly Hitler, a maniac with many astonishing … [Read more...]
Regensburg isn’t regular
Well then, what makes Regensburg irregular? (Not in that way!) It's one of Germany's best-preserved medieval cities, the old city center is a UNESCO World Heritage city of "Outstanding Universal Value" and Regensburg was once the home of retired Pope Benedict XVI. And, for something that might actually be of interest to our readers, it's home to Germany's oldest restaurant, … [Read more...]
Perusing Pleasing Passau
Before going to Passau with Viking River Cruises Blonde knew one thing about Passau; it’s a city somewhere in Germany. Rather surprisingly, she got that right. But Passau deserves more recognition than merely knowing its country of location. Passau, like Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where Blonde grew up, is a city where 3 rivers converge. Pop quiz time! What are the three … [Read more...]
2014: Where we traveled , what we liked and what we didn’t
Our travel in 2014 2014 was the year that we went from casual travel users to wild-eyed travel addicts. And, following in the footsteps of the late Amy Winehouse we won't go to rehab. We say "no, no, no" (but we do hope for a happier outcome). So, without further reference to dead rock stars here's our 2014 travel year in review: Doha What we liked: The … [Read more...]
German Christmas Markets 101
Blonde recently returned from a Viking River Cruise that visited a variety of German Christmas markets along the Danube. She'd long heard about the German Christmas markets and pictured them as being pretty, twinkly and full of hand-crafted decorations to buy. And, for once, she was right. However, due to overwhelming reader education dedication she decided to create a sort … [Read more...]
Nuremberg with Viking River Cruises
Nuremberg was never on the list of places Blonde thought of visiting. But then Viking River Cruises extended an invitation to join their Romantic Danube itinerary which began in Nuremberg. So Nuremberg moved way up the list! That turned out to be a good thing. The trip was in December and Nuremberg has what is reputed to be the oldest and largest Christmas market. OK, … [Read more...]
Layover in Frankfurt? Do a Rhine River Cruise.
Blonde was making the long journey from Bhutan home to Florida and decided to break up the travel instead of enduring an unnecessary marathon of misery. Part of the plan was to spend 2 nights in Frankfurt in order to have one full day to go into the city and explore. But Blonde didn't follow her own requirement of always looking at holiday calendars before … [Read more...]
I want to ‘Go with Oh’ to Berlin
[slideshow]Why should Go with Oh select two frayed around the edges American sisters to represent them in four cities of Europe, beginning with Berlin, this coming Spring? Some of the many self-serving valid business reasons that come to mind are: We are old enough to remember East Germany and the fall of the Berlin Wall (aka the ‘Anti-Fascist Protection Barrier"). And, … [Read more...]